Start Date: June/July 2015
Duration of award: 3 years

Supervisors: 
Dr Nigel J. Simms – Reader in Energy Materials
Dr Joy Sumner – Academic Fellow in Energy Materials

For UK/EU applicants, this studentship will provide a maintenance bursary of up to £15,000 p.a. (tax free) plus fees* for three years

Components in the power plant boilers must withstand strenuous operating conditions.  Within the hot steam path all components will undergo steam oxidation, while boiler heat exchange tubes suffer the dual degradation processes of steam oxidation internally and fireside corrosion externally. As such, these steam path components often limit power plant efficiencies. This has become more pronounced with the switch to carbon-neutral fuels using biomass-firing or co-firing in traditionally coal-fired systems. Further complications arise when plants operate flexibly to accommodate power supply to the National Grid from intermittent renewable sources.

Within this project the PhD student will study the sensitivity of materials damage rates linked to specific fuels and/or operating conditions. In particular they will focus on improving materials selection and plant viability by:

• Assessing the rate of steamside oxidation
• Developing technical understanding of deposits formed on the outer surfaces of heat exchangers (fireside deposits) and the impact of corrosive environments on these
• Quantifying the impact of using progressively dirtier biomass and coals on the fireside corrosive environments and deposits
• Investigating the temperature sensitivity of degradation mechanisms for these components
• Developing models for fireside corrosion and steam oxidation damage to the extent that the boundaries for safe operating windows can be calculated for specific fuels/operating conditions/component life combinations

This PhD will form part of a large, EPSRC-funded project (Flex-E-Plant), which aims to enable the development of more flexible and efficient power plants for the UK.  Research relating to the fireside corrosion/steam oxidation of heat exchanger and steam path materials will be student-led under the guidance of academic and industrial supervisors. The student will work with a range of other researchers in the Institute and Flex-E-Plant consortium (including industrial collaborators such as Siemens, Alstom, RWE, E.On). The consortium has bi-yearly progress meetings and partners within this project are expected to work closely together. By the end of their PhD, the successful student will have presented data to numerous review meetings, disseminated their results at international conferences, and published papers in peer-reviewed journals.

Entry requirements:

Applicants should have a first or upper second class UK Honours degree (or equivalent) in materials science, physics, engineering or a related discipline. A Master’s degree relating to power generation, corrosion and/or metallurgy is also desirable, but not essential.

Funding:

*Funding is available for UK/EU students to cover tuition fees and maintenance.

How to apply:

If you are eligible to apply for this research studentship, please complete the online application form.

Informal enquiries can be sent to:

Dr Nigel Simms - Email: n.j.simms<στο>cranfield.ac.uk; tel: + 44 (0) 1234 752954